Method for producing L-amino acids by fermentation using bacteria having enhanced expression of xylose utilization genes

ABSTRACT

A method for producing an L-amino acid, such as L-histidine, L-threonine, L-lysine, L-glutamic acid, and L-tryptophan, using bacterium belonging to the genus  Escherichia  which has increased expression of genes, such as those of the xylABFGHR locus, which encode the xylose utilization enzymes, is disclosed. The method includes cultivating the L-amino acid producing bacterium in a culture medium containing xylose, and collecting the L-amino acid from the culture medium.

This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 60/610,545 filed on Sep. 17, 2004, under 35 USC §119(e) and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/059,686 filed on Feb. 17, 2005 as a continuation-in-part under 35 U.S.C. §120.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a method for producing L-amino acids by pentose fermentation, and more specifically to a method for producing L-amino acids using bacteria having enhanced expression of xylose utilization genes by fermentation of mixture of arabinose and/or xylose along with glucose as a carbon source. The non-expensive carbon source which includes a mixture of hexoses and pentoses of hemicellulose fractions from cellulosic biomass can be utilized for commercial production of L-amino acids, for example, L-histidine, L-threonine, L-lysine, L-glutamic acid, and L-tryptophan.

2. Brief Description of the Related Art

Conventionally, L-amino acids have been industrially produced by fermentation processes using strains of different microorganisms. The fermentation media for the process typically contains sufficient amounts of different sources of carbon and nitrogen.

Traditionally, various carbohydrates such as hexoses, pentoses, trioses; various organic acids and alcohols are used as a carbon source. Hexoses include glucose, fructose, mannose, sorbose, galactose and the like. Pentoses include arabinose, xylose, ribose and the like. However, the above-mentioned carbohydrates and other traditional carbon sources, such as molasses, corn, sugarcane, starch, its hydrolysate, etc., currently used in industry are rather expensive. Therefore, finding alternative less expensive sources for production of L-amino acids is desirable.

Cellulosic biomass is a favorable feedstock for L-amino acid production because it is both readily available and less expensive than carbohydrates, corn, sugarcane or other sources of carbon. Typical amounts of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin in biomass are approximately 40-60% of cellulose, 20-40% of hemicellulose 10-25% of lignin and 10% of other components. The cellulose fraction consists of polymers of a hexose sugar, typically glucose. The hemicellulose fraction is made up of mostly pentose sugars, including xylose and arabinose. The composition of various biomass feedstocks is shown in Table 1 (http://www.ott.doe.gov/biofuels/understanding_biomass.html)

TABLE 1 Six-carbon Five-carbon Material sugars sugars Lignin Ash Hardwoods 39-50% 18-28% 15-28% 0.3-1.0% Softwoods 41-57%  8-12% 24-27% 0.1-0.4%

More detailed information about composition of over 150 biomass samples is summarized in the “Biomass Feedstock Composition and Property Database” (http://www.ott.doe.gov/biofuels/progs/search1.cgi).

An industrial process for effective conversion of cellulosic biomass into usable fermentation feedstock, typically a mixture of carbohydrates, is expected to be developed in the near future. Therefore, utilization of renewable energy sources such as cellulose and hemicellulose for production of useful compounds is expected to increase in the near future (Aristidou A., Pentila. M., Curr. Opin. Biotechnol, 2000, April, 11:2, 187-198). However, a great majority of published articles and patents, or patent applications, describe the utilization of cellulosic biomass by biocatalysts (bacteria and yeasts) for production of ethanol, which is expected to be useful as an alternative fuel. Such processes include fermentation of cellulosic biomass using different modified strains of Zymomonas mobilis (Deanda K. et al, Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 1996 December, 62:12, 4465-70; Mohagheghi A. et al, Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol., 2002, 98-100:885-98; Lawford H. G., Rousseau J. D., Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol, 2002, 98-100:429-48; PCT applications WO95/28476, WO98/50524), modified strains of Escherichia coli (Dien B. S. et al, Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol, 2000, 84-86:181-96; Nichols N. N. et al, Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol., 2001 July, 56:1-2, 120-5; U.S. Pat. No. 5,000,000). Xylitol can be produced by fermentation of xylose from hemicellulosic sugars using Candida tropicalis (Walthers T. et al, Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol., 2001, 91-93:423-35). 1,2-propanediol can be produced by fermentation of arabinose, fructose, galactose, glucose, lactose, maltose, sucrose, xylose, and combination thereof using recombinant Escherichia coli strain (U.S. Pat. No. 6,303,352). Also, it has been shown that 3-dehydroshikimic acid can be obtained by fermentation of a glucose/xylose/arabinose mixture using Escherichia coli strain. The highest concentrations and yields of 3-dehydroshikimic acid were obtained when the glucose/xylose/arabinose mixture was used as the carbon source, as compared to when either xylose or glucose alone was used as a carbon source (Kai Li and J. W. Frost, Biotechnol. Prog., 1999, 15, 876-883).

It is has been reported that Escherichia coli can utilize pentoses such as L-arabinose and D-xylose (Escherichia coli and Salmonella, Second Edition, Editor in Chief: F. C. Neidhardt, ASM Press, Washington D.C., 1996). Transport of L-arabinose into the cell is performed by two inducible systems: (1) a low-affinity permease (K_(m) about 0.1 mM) encoded by araE gene, and (2) a high-affinity (K_(m) 1 to 3 μM) system encoded by the araFG operon. The araF gene encodes a periplasmic binding protein (306 amino acids) with chemotactic receptor function, and the araG locus encodes an inner membrane protein. The sugar is metabolized by a set of enzymes encoded by the araBAD operon: an isomerase (encoded by the araA gene), which reversibly converts the aldose to L-ribulose; a kinase (encoded by the araB gene), which phosphorylates the ketose to L-ribulose 5-phosphate; and L-ribulose-5-phosphate-4-epimerase (encoded by the araD gene), which catalyzes the formation of D-xylose-5-phosphate (Escherichia coli and Salmonella, Second Edition, Editor in Chief: F. C. Neidhardt, ASM Press, Washington D.C., 1996).

Most strains of E. coli grow on D-xylose, but a mutation is necessary for the K-12 strain to grow on the compound. Utilization of this pentose is through an inducible and catabolite-repressible pathway involving transport across the cytoplasmic membrane by two inducible permeases (not active on D-ribose or D-arabinose), isomerization to D-xylulose, and ATP-dependent phosphorylation of the pentulose to yield D-xylulose 5-phosphate. The high-affinity (K_(m) 0.3 to 3 μM transport system depends on a periplasmic binding protein (37,000 Da) and is probably driven by a high-energy compound. The low-affinity (K_(m) about 170 μM) system is energized by a proton motive force. This D-xylose-proton-symport system is encoded by the xylE gene. The main gene cluster specifying D-xylose utilization is xylAB(RT). The xylA gene encodes the isomerase (54,000 Da) and xylB gene encodes the kinase (52,000 Da). The operon contains two transcriptional start points, with one of them being inserted upstream of the xylB open reading frame. Since the low-affinity permease is specified by the unlinked xylE, the xylT locus, also named as xylF (xylFGHR), probably codes for the high-affinity transport system and therefore should contain at least two genes (one for a periplasmic protein and one for an integral membrane protein) (Escherichia coli and Salmonella, Second Edition, Editor in Chief: F. C. Neidhardt, ASM Press, Washington D.C., 1996). The xylFGH genes code for xylose ABC transporters, where xylF gene encodes the putative xylose binding protein, xylG gene encodes the putative ATP-binding protein, xylH gene encodes the putative membrane component, and xylR gene encodes the xylose transcriptional activator.

Introduction of the above-mentioned E. coli genes which code for L-arabinose isomerase, L-ribulokinase, L-ribulose 5-phosphate 4-epimerase, xylose isomerase and xylulokinase, in addition to transaldolase and transketolase, allow a microbe, such as Zymomonas mobilis, to metabolize arabinose and xylose to ethanol (WO/9528476, WO98/50524). In contrast, Zymomonas genes which code for alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and pyruvate decarboxylase (PDH) are useful for ethanol production by Escherichia coli strains (Dien B. S. et al, Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol, 2000, 84-86:181-96; U.S. Pat. No. 5,000,000).

A process for producing L-amino acids, such as L-isoleucine, L-histidine, L-threonine and L-tryptophan, by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentoses, such as arabinose and xylose, was disclosed earlier by authors of the present invention (Russian patent application 2003105269).

However, at present, there are no reports describing bacteria having enhanced expression of the xylose utilization genes such as those at the xylABFGHR locus, or use of these genes for production of L-amino acids from a mixture of hexose and pentose sugars.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of present invention is to enhance production of an L-amino acid producing strain, to provide an L-amino acid producing bacterium having enhanced expression of xylose utilization genes, and to provide a method for producing L-amino acids from a mixture of hexose sugars, such as glucose, and pentose sugars, such as xylose or arabinose, using the bacterium. A fermentation feedstock obtained from cellulosic biomass may be used as a carbon source for the culture medium. This aim was achieved by finding that the xylABFGHR locus cloned on a low copy vector enhances production of L-amino acids, for example, L-histidine, L-threonine, L-lysine, L-glutamic acid and L-tryptophan. A microorganism is used which is capable of growth on the fermentation feedstock and is efficient in production of L-amino acids. The fermentation feedstock consists of xylose and arabinose along with glucose, as the carbon source. L-amino acid producing strains are exemplified by Escherichia coli strain. Thus the present invention has been completed.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an L-amino acid producing bacterium of the Enterobacteriaceae family which has an enhanced activity of any of the xylose utilization enzymes.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the bacterium described above, wherein the bacterium belongs to the genus Escherichia.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the bacterium described above, wherein the bacterium belongs to the genus Pantoea.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the bacterium described above, wherein the activities of the xylose utilization enzymes are enhanced by increasing the expression amount of the xylABFGHR locus.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the bacterium described above, wherein the activities of the xylose utilization enzymes are increased by increasing the copy number of the xylABFGHR locus or modifying an expression control sequence of the genes so that the expression of the genes are enhanced.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the bacterium described above, wherein the copy number is increased by transforming the bacterium with a low copy vector harboring the xylABFGHR locus.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the bacterium described above, wherein the xylABFGHR locus originates from a bacterium belonging to the genus Escherichia.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method for producing L-amino acids, which comprises cultivating the bacterium described above in a culture medium containing a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars, and collecting the L-amino acid from the culture medium.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the pentose sugars are arabinose and xylose.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the mixture of sugars is a feedstock mixture of sugars obtained from cellulosic biomass.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the L-amino acid to be produced is L-histidine.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the bacterium has enhanced expression of genes for L-histidine biosynthesis.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the L-amino acid to be produced is L-threonine.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the bacterium has enhanced expression of genes for L-threonine biosynthesis.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the L-amino acid to be produced is L-lysine.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the bacterium has enhanced expression of genes for L-lysine biosynthesis.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the L-amino acid to be produced is L-glutamic acid.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the bacterium has enhanced expression of genes for L-glutamic acid biosynthesis.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the L-amino acid to be produced is L-tryptophan.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the method described above, wherein the bacterium has enhanced expression of genes for L-tryptophan biosynthesis.

The method for producing L-amino acids includes production of L-histidine by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars, such as arabinose and xylose. Also, the method for producing L-amino acids includes production of L-threonine by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars, such as arabinose and xylose. Also, the method for producing L-amino acids includes production of L-lysine by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars, such as arabinose and xylose. Also, the method for producing L-amino acids includes production of L-glutamic acid by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars, such as arabinose and xylose. Also, the method for producing L-amino acids includes production of L-tryptophan by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars, such as arabinose and xylose. This mixture of glucose and pentose sugars used as a fermentation feedstock can be obtained from under-utilized sources of plant biomass, such as cellulosic biomass, preferably hydrolysate of cellulose.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows the structure of the xylABFGHR locus on the chromosome of E. coli strain MG1655. The arrows on the diagram indicate positions of primers used in PCR.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the present invention, “L-amino acid producing bacterium” means a bacterium, which has an ability to cause accumulation of L-amino acids in a medium, when the bacterium of the present invention is cultured in the medium. The L-amino acid producing ability may be imparted or enhanced by breeding. The term “L-amino acid producing bacterium” used herein also means a bacterium which is able to produce and cause accumulation of L-amino acids in a culture medium in amounts larger than a wild-type or parental strain, and preferably means that the microorganism is able to produce and cause accumulation in a medium of an amount not less than 0.5 g/L, more preferably not less than 1.0 g/L of target L-amino acid. “L-amino acids” include L-alanine, L-arginine, L-asparagine, L-aspartic acid, L-cysteine, L-glutamic acid, L-glutamine, L-glycine, L-histidine, L-isoleucine, L-leucine, L-lysine, L-methionine, L-phenylalanine, L-proline, L-serine, L-threonine, L-tryptophan, L-tyrosine and L-valine.

The Enterobacteriaceae family includes bacteria belonging to the genera Escherichia, Enterobacter, Erwinia, Klebsiella, Pantoea, Photorhabdus, Providencia, Salmonella, Serratia, Shigella, Morganella Yersinia, etc. Specifically, those classified into the Enterobacteriaceae according to the taxonomy used in the NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information) database (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbinpost/Taxonomy/wgetorg?mode=Tree&id=1236&lvl=3&keep=1&srchmode=1&unlock) can be used. A bacterium belonging to the genus Escherichia or Pantoea are preferred.

The phrase “a bacterium belonging to the genus Escherichia” means that the bacterium is classified in the genus Escherichia according to the classification known to a person skilled in the art of microbiology. Examples of a bacterium belonging to the genus Escherichia as used in the present invention include, but are not limited to, Escherichia coli (E. coli).

The bacterium belonging to the genus Escherichia that can be used in the present invention is not particularly limited, however for example, bacteria described by Neidhardt, F. C. et al. (Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium, American Society for Microbiology, Washington D.C., 1208, Table 1) are encompassed by the present invention.

The phrase “a bacterium belonging to the genus Pantoea” means that the bacterium is classified as the genus Pantoea according to the classification known to a person skilled in the art of microbiology. Some species of Enterobacter agglomerans have been recently re-classified into Pantoea agglomerans, Pantoea ananatis, Pantoea stewartii or the like, based on nucleotide sequence analysis of 16S rRNA, etc.

The phrase “having enhanced activity of a xylose utilization enzyme” means that the activity of the enzyme per cell is higher than that of a non-modified strain, for example, a wild-type strain. Examples include where the number of enzyme molecules per cell increases, and where specific activity per enzyme molecule increases, and so forth. The amount of the protein encoded by the gene can be measured by known methods including SDS-PAGE followed by immunoblotting assay (Western blotting analysis) and the like. Furthermore, a wild-type strain that can act as a control includes, for example Escherichia coli K-12. As a result of enhancing the intracellular activity of a xylose utilization enzyme, accumulation of L-amino acids, such as L-histidine, L-threonine, L-lysine; L-glutamic acid, and/or L-tryptophan, in a medium is observed.

The “xylose utilization enzymes” include enzymes of xylose transport, xylose isomerization and xylose phosphorylation, and regulatory proteins. Such enzymes include xylose isomerase, xylulokinase, xylose transporters, and xylose transcriptional activator. Xylose isomerase catalyzes the reaction of isomerization of D-xylose to D-xylulose. Xylulokinase catalyzes the reaction of phosphorylation of D-xylulose using ATP yielding D-xylulose-5-phosphate and ADP. The presence of activity of xylose utilization enzymes, such as xylose isomerase, xylulokinase, is determined by complementation of corresponding xylose isomerase-negative or xylulokinase-negative E. coli mutants, respectively.

The phrase “a bacterium belonging to the genus Escherichia” means that the bacterium is classified as the genus Escherichia according to the classification known to a person skilled in the microbiology. An example of a microorganism belonging to the genus Escherichia as used in the present invention is Escherichia coli (E. coli).

The phrase “increasing the expression amount of gene(s)” means that the expression amount of gene(s) is higher than that of a non-modified strain, for example, a wild-type strain. Examples of such modification include increasing the number of expressed gene(s) per cell, increasing the expression level of the gene(s) and so forth. The quantity of the copy number of an expressed gene is measured, for example, by restricting the chromosomal DNA followed by Southern blotting using a probe based on the gene sequence, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), and the like. The level of gene expression can be measured by various methods including Northern blotting, quantitative RT-PCR, and the like. Furthermore, a wild-type strain that can act as a control includes, for example Escherichia coli K-12. As a result of enhancing the intracellular activity of a xylose utilization enzyme, accumulation of L-amino acid, such as L-histidine, L-threonine, L-lysine, L-glutamic acid, or L-tryptophan, in a medium containing pentose sugar, such as xylose, is observed.

Enhancing the activities of xylose utilization enzymes in a bacterial cell can be attained by increasing the expression of genes which code for said enzymes. Genes of xylose utilization include any genes derived from bacteria of Enterobacteriaceae family, as well as genes derived from other bacteria such as thermophilic Bacillus sp. (Biochem. Mol. Bio. Int., 1996, 39(5), 1049-1062). Genes derived from bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia are preferred.

The gene coding for xylose isomerase from E. coli (EC numbers 5.3.1.5) is known and has been designated xylA (nucleotide numbers 3727072 to 3728394 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.1, gi:16131436). The gene coding for xylulokinase (EC numbers 2.7.1.17) is known and has been designated xylB (nucleotide numbers 3725546 to 3727000 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.1, gi:16131435). The gene coding for xylose binding protein transport system is known and has been designated xylF (nucleotide numbers 3728760 to 3729752 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.1, gi:16131437). The gene coding for putative ATP-binding protein of xylose transport system is known and has been designated xylG (nucleotide numbers 3729830 to 3731371 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.1, gi:16131438). The gene coding for the permease component of the ABC-type xylose transport system is known and has been designated xylH gene (nucleotide numbers 3731349 to 3732530 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.1, gi:16131439). The gene coding for the transcriptional regulator of the xyl operon is known and has been designated xylR (nucleotide numbers 3732608 to 3733786 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.1, gi:16131440). Therefore, the above-mentioned genes can be obtained by PCR (polymerase chain reaction; refer to White, T. J. et al., Trends Genet., 5, 185 (1989)) using primers based on the nucleotide sequence of the genes.

Genes coding for xylose utilization enzymes from other microorganisms can be similarly obtained.

The xylA gene from Escherichia coli is exemplified by a DNA which encodes the following protein (A) or (B):

-   (A) a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:2;     or -   (B) a protein having an amino acid sequence which includes deletion,     substitution, insertion or addition of one or several amino acids in     the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:2, and which has an     activity of xylose isomerase.

The xylB gene from Escherichia coli is exemplified by a DNA which encodes the following protein (C) or (D):

-   (C) a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 4;     or -   (D) a protein having an amino acid sequence which includes deletion,     substitution, insertion or addition of one or several amino acids in     the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:4, and which has an     activity of xylulokinase.

The xylF gene from Escherichia coli is exemplified by a DNA which encodes the following protein (E) or (F):

-   (E) a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:6;     or -   (F) a protein having an amino acid sequence which includes deletion,     substitution, insertion or addition of one or several amino acids in     the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:6, and which has activity     to increase the amount of L-amino acid, such as L-histidine,     L-threonine, L-lysine, L-glutamic acid, or L-tryptophan, in a     medium, when the amount of protein is increased in the L-amino acid     producing bacterium along with the amount of proteins coded by xylAB     and xylGHR genes.

The xylG gene from Escherichia coli is exemplified by a DNA which encodes the following protein (G) or (H):

-   (G) a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:8;     or -   (H) a protein having an amino acid sequence which includes deletion,     substitution, insertion or addition of one or several amino acids in     the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:8, and which has an     activity to increase the amount of L-amino acid, such as     L-histidine, L-threonine, L-lysine, L-glutamic acid, or     L-tryptophan, in a medium, when the amount of protein is increased     in the L-amino acid producing bacterium along with the amount of     proteins coded by xylAB and xylFHR genes.

The xylH gene from Escherichia coli is exemplified by a DNA which encodes the following protein (I) or (J):

-   (I) a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:10; -   (J) a protein having an amino acid sequence including deletion,     substitution, insertion or addition of one or several amino acids in     the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:10, and which has an     activity to increase the amount of L-amino acid, such as     L-histidine, L-threonine, L-lysine, L-glutamic acid, or     L-tryptophan, in a medium, when the amount of protein is increased     in the L-amino acid producing bacterium along with the amount of     proteins coded by xylAB and xylFGR genes.

The xylR gene from Escherichia coli is exemplified by a DNA which encodes the following protein (K) or (L):

-   (K) a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:12; -   (L) a protein having an amino acid sequence including deletion,     substitution, insertion or addition of one or several amino acids in     the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:12, and which has an     activity to increase the amount of L-amino acid, such as     L-histidine, L-threonine, L-lysine, L-glutamic acid, or     L-tryptophan, in a medium, when the amount of protein is increased     in the L-amino acid producing bacterium along with the amount of     proteins coded by xylAB and xylFGH genes.

The DNA coding for xylose isomerase includes a DNA coding for the protein which includes deletion, substitution, insertion or addition of one or several amino acids in one or more positions on the protein (A) as long as the activity of the protein is not lost. Although the number of “several” amino acids differs depending on the position or the type of amino acid residues in the three-dimensional structure of the protein, it may be 2 to 50, preferably 2 to 20, and more preferably 2 to 10 for the protein (A). This is because some amino acids have high homology to one another and substitution of such an amino acid does not greatly affect the three dimensional structure of the protein and its activity. Therefore, the protein (B) may have homology of not less than 30 to 50%, preferably 50 to 70%, more preferably 70-90%, still more preferably more then 90% and most preferably more than 95% with respect to the entire amino acid sequence for xylose isomerase, and which has the activity of xylose isomerase. The same approach and homology determination can be applied to other proteins (C), (E), (G), (I) and (K).

To evaluate the degree of protein or DNA homology, several calculation methods such as BLAST search, FASTA search and ClustalW, can be used.

BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool) is the heuristic search algorithm employed by the programs blastp, blastn, blastx, megablast, tblastn, and tblastx; these programs ascribe significance to their findings using the statistical methods of Karlin, Samuel and Stephen F. Altschul (“Methods for assessing the statistical significance of molecular sequence features by using general scoring schemes”. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 1990, 87:2264-68; “Applications and statistics for multiple high-scoring segments in molecular sequences”. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 1993, 90:5873-7). FASTA search method described by W. R. Pearson (“Rapid and Sensitive Sequence Comparison with FASTP and FASTA”, Methods in Enzymology, 1990 183:63-98). ClustalW method described by Thompson J. D., Higgins D. G. and Gibson T. J. (“CLUSTAL W: improving the sensitivity of progressive multiple sequence alignment through sequence weighting, position-specific gap penalties and weight matrix choice”, Nucleic Acids Res. 1994, 22:4673-4680).

Changes to the protein defined in (A) such as those described above are typically conservative changes so as to maintain the activity of the protein. Substitution changes include those in which at least one residue in the amino acid sequence has been removed and a different residue inserted in its place. Examples of amino acids which may be substituted for an original amino acid in the above protein and which are regarded as conservative substitutions include: Ala substituted with ser or thr; arg substituted with gin, his, or lys; asn substituted with glu, gin, lys, his, asp; asp substituted with asn, glu, or gin; cys substituted with ser or ala; gin substituted with asn, glu, lys, his, asp, or arg; glu substituted with asn, gin, lys, or asp; gly substituted with pro; his substituted with asn, lys, gln, arg, tyr; ile substituted with leu, met, val, phe; leu substituted with ile, met, val, phe; lys substituted with asn, glu, gin, his, arg; met substituted with ile, leu, val, phe; phe substituted with trp, tyr, met, ile, or leu; ser substituted with thr, ala; thr substituted with ser or ala; trp substituted with phe, tyr; tyr substituted with his, phe, or trp; and val substituted with met, ile, leu.

The DNA coding for substantially the same protein as the protein defined in (A) may be obtained by, for example, modification of the nucleotide sequence coding for the protein defined in (A) using site-directed mutagenesis so that one or more amino acid residue will be deleted, substituted, inserted or added. Such modified DNA can be obtained by conventional methods using treatments with reagents and conditions generating mutations. Such treatments include treating the DNA coding for proteins of present invention with hydroxylamine or treating the bacterium harboring the DNA with UV irradiation or reagents such as N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine or nitrous acid.

The DNA coding for the xylose isomerase includes variants which can be found in the different strains of bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia due to natural diversity. The DNA coding for such variants can be obtained by isolating the DNA which hybridizes with the xylA gene or a part of the gene under the stringent conditions, and which codes for the protein having an activity of xylose isomerase. The phrase “stringent conditions” referred to herein include conditions under which a so-called specific hybrid is formed, and non-specific hybrid is not formed. For example, the stringent conditions include conditions under which DNAs having high homology, for instance DNAs having homology no less than 70%, preferably no less than 80%, more preferably no less than 90%, most preferably no less than 95% to each other, are hybridized. Alternatively, the stringent conditions are exemplified by conditions which comprise ordinary conditions of washing in Southern hybridization, e.g., 60° C., 1×SSC, 0.1% SDS, preferably 0.1×SSC, 0.1% SDS. Duration of the washing procedure depends on the type of membrane used for blotting and, as a rule, what is recommended by manufacturer. For example, recommended duration of washing the Hybond™ N+ nylon membrane (Amersham) under stringent conditions is 15 minutes. Preferably, washing may be performed 2 to 3 times. A partial sequence of the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1 can also be used as a probe for DNA that codes for variants and hybridizes with xylA gene. Such a probe may be prepared by PCR using oligonucleotides produced based on the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1 as primers, and a DNA fragment containing the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1 as a template. When a DNA fragment in a length of about 300 bp is used as the probe, the conditions of washing for the hybridization can be, for example, 50° C., 2×SSC, and 0.1% SDS.

DNAs coding for substantially the same proteins as the other enzymes of xylose utilization can be obtained by methods which are similar to those used to obtain xylose isomerase, as described above.

Transformation of a bacterium with a DNA coding for a protein means introduction of the DNA into a bacterium cell, for example, by conventional methods to increase expression of the gene coding for the protein of present invention and to enhance the activity of the protein in the bacterial cell.

The bacterium of the present invention also includes one where the activity of the protein of the present invention is enhanced by transformation of said bacterium with a DNA coding for a protein as defined in (A) or (B), (C) or (D), (E) or (F), (G) or (H), (I) or (J), and (K) or (L), or by alteration of expression regulation sequence of said DNA on the chromosome of the bacterium.

A method of the enhancing gene expression includes increasing the gene copy number. Introduction of a gene into a vector that is able to function in a bacterium belonging to the genus Escherichia increases copy number of the gene. For such purposes multi-copy vectors can be preferably used. Preferably, low copy vectors are used. The low-copy vector is exemplified by pSC101, pMW118, pMW119 and the like. The term “low copy vector” is used for vectors which have a copy number of up to 5 copies per cell. Methods of transformation include any method known to those with skill in the art. For example, a method of treating recipient cells with calcium chloride so as to increase permeability of the cells to DNA has been reported for Escherichia coli K-12 (Mandel, M. and Higa, A., J. Mol. Biol., 53, 159 (1970)) and may be used.

Enhancement of gene expression may also be achieved by introduction of multiple copies of the gene into a bacterial chromosome by, for example, a method of homologous recombination, Mu integration or the like. For example, one round of Mu integration allows introduction into a bacterial chromosome of up to 3 copies of the gene.

On the other hand, the enhancement of gene expression can be achieved by placing the DNA of the present invention under the control of a more potent promoter instead of the native promoter. The strength of a promoter is defined by the frequency of acts of RNA synthesis initiation. Methods for evaluation of the strength of a promoter and examples of potent promoters are described by Deuschle, U., Kammerer, W., Gentz, R., Bujard, H. (Promoters in Escherichia coli: a hierarchy of in vivo strength indicates alternate structures. EMBO J. 1986, 5, 2987-2994). For example, P_(R) promoter is known as a potent constitutive promoter. Other known potent promoters are P_(L) promoter, lac promoter, trp promoter, trc promoter, of lambda phage and the like.

The enhancement of translation can be achieved by introducing a more efficient Shine-Dalgarno sequence (SD sequence) into the DNA of the present invention instead of the native SD sequence. The SD sequence is a region upstream of the start codon of the mRNA which interacts with the 16S RNA of the ribosome (Shine J. and Dalgarno L., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 1974, 71, 4, 1342-6).

Use of a more potent promoter can be combined with the multiplication of gene copies method.

Alternatively, a promoter can be enhanced by, for example, introducing a mutation into the promoter to increase a transcription level of a gene located downstream of the promoter. Furthermore, it is known that substitution of several nucleotides in a spacer between the ribosome binding site (RBS) and start codon, and particularly, the sequences immediately upstream of the start codon profoundly affect the mRNA translatability. For example, a 20-fold range in the expression levels was found, depending on the nature of the three nucleotides preceding the start codon (Gold et al., Annu. Rev. Microbiol., 35, 365-403, 1981; Hui et al., EMBO J., 3, 623-629, 1984).

Methods for preparation of chromosomal DNA, hybridization, PCR, preparation of plasmid DNA, digestion and ligation of DNA, transformation, selection of an oligonucleotide as a primer and the like can be ordinary methods well known to one skilled in the art. These methods are described in Sambrook, J., and Russell D., “Molecular Cloning A Laboratory Manual, Third Edition”, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press (2001), and the like.

The bacterium of the present invention can be obtained by introduction of the aforementioned DNAs into a bacterium inherently having an ability to produce an L-amino acid. Alternatively, the bacterium of present invention can be obtained by imparting an ability to produce an L-amino acid to the bacterium already harboring the DNAs.

Examples of L-amino acid producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia are described below.

L-Histidine Producing Bacteria

Examples of bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia having L-histidine producing ability include L-histidine producing bacterium strains belonging to the genus Escherichia, such as E. coli strain 24 (VKPM B-5945, RU2003677); E. coli strain 80 (VKPM B-7270, RU2119536); E. coli strains NRRL B-12116-B12121 (U.S. Pat. No. 4,388,405); E. coli strains H-9342 (FERM BP-6675) and H-9343 (FERM BP-6676) (U.S. Pat. No. 6,344,347); E. coli strain H-9341 (FERM BP-6674) (EP1085087); E. coli strain A180/pFM201 (U.S. Pat. No. 6,258,554) and the like.

Preferably, the bacterium of the present invention is further modified to enhance expression of genes of the histidine operon, which preferably includes the hisG gene encoding ATP phosphoribosyl transferase of which feedback inhibition by L-histidine is desensitized (Russian patents 2003677 and 2119536), for L-histidine producing bacteria.

L-Threonine-Producing Bacteria

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-threonine-producing bacteria of the present invention include, but are not limited to, L-threonine-producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia, such as E. coli strain TDH-6/pVIC40 (VKPM B-3996) (U.S. Pat. No. 5,175,107, U.S. Pat. No. 5,705,371), E. coli strain NRRL-21593 (U.S. Pat. No. 5,939,307), E. coli strain FERM BP-3756 (U.S. Pat. No. 5,474,918), E. coli strains FERM BP-3519 and FERM BP-3520 (U.S. Pat. No. 5,376,538), E. coli strain MG442 (Gusyatiner et al., Genetika (in Russian), 14, 947-956 (1978)), E. coli strains VL643 and VL2055 (EP 1149911 A), and the like.

The strain TDH-6 is deficient in the thrC gene, as well as being sucrose-assimilative, and the ilvA gene has a leaky mutation. This strain also has a mutation in the rhtA gene, which imparts resistance to high concentrations of threonine or homoserine. The strain B-3996 contains the plasmid pVIC40 which was obtained by inserting a thrA*BC operon which includes a mutant thrA gene into a RSF1010-derived vector. This mutant thrA gene encodes aspartokinase homoserine dehydrogenase I which has substantially desensitized feedback inhibition by threonine. The strain B-3996 was deposited on Nov. 19, 1987 in the All-Union Scientific Center of Antibiotics (Nagatinskaya Street 3-A, 117105 Moscow, Russian Federation) under the accession number RIA 1867. The strain was also deposited in the Russian National Collection of Industrial Microorganisms (VKPM) (Dorozhny proezd. 1, Moscow 117545, Russian Federation) under the accession number B-3996.

Preferably, the bacterium of the present invention is further modified to enhance expression of one or more of the following genes:

-   -   the mutant thrA gene which codes for aspartokinase homoserine         dehydrogenase I resistant to feed back inhibition by threonine;     -   the thrB gene which codes for homoserine kinase;     -   the thrC gene which codes for threonine synthase;     -   the rhtA gene which codes for a putative transmembrane protein;     -   the asd gene which codes for aspartate-β-semialdehyde         dehydrogenase; and     -   the aspC gene which codes for aspartate aminotransferase         (aspartate transaminase);

The thrA gene which encodes aspartokinase homoserine dehydrogenase I of Escherichia coli has been elucidated (nucleotide numbers 337 to 2799 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.2, gi: 49175990). The thrA gene is located between thrL and thrB genes on the chromosome of E. coli K-12. The thrB gene which encodes homoserine kinase of Escherichia coli has been elucidated (nucleotide numbers 2801 to 3733 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.2, gi: 49175990). The thrB gene is located between thrA and thrC genes on the chromosome of E. coli K-12. The thrC gene which encodes threonine synthase of Escherichia coli has been elucidated (nucleotide numbers 3734 to 5020 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.2, gi: 49175990). The thrC gene is located between thrB gene and yaaX open reading frame on the chromosome of E. coli K-12. All three genes function as a single threonine operon.

A mutant thrA gene which codes for aspartokinase homoserine dehydrogenase I resistant to feedback inhibition by threonine, as well as the thrB and thrC genes, can be obtained as one operon from the well-known plasmid pVIC40 which is present in the threonine producing E. coli strain VKPM B-3996. Plasmid pVIC40 is described in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,705,371.

The rhtA gene exists at 18 min on the E. coli chromosome close to the glnHPQ operon that encodes components of the glutamine transport system, and the rhtA gene is identical to ORF1 (ybiF gene, numbers 764 to 1651 in the GenBank accession number AAA218541, gi:440181), located between the pexB and ompX genes. The unit expressing a protein encoded by the ORF1 has been designated rhtA (rht: resistance to homoserine and threonine) gene. Also, it was found that the rhtA23 mutation is an A-for-G substitution at position −1 with respect to the ATG start codon (ABSTRACTS of 17^(th) International Congress of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in conjugation with 1997 Annual Meeting of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, San Francisco, Calif. Aug. 24-29, 1997, abstract No. 457, EP 1013765 A).

The asd gene of E. coli has already been elucidated (nucleotide numbers 3572511 to 3571408 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.1, gi:16131307), and can be obtained by PCR (polymerase chain reaction; refer to White, T. J. et al., Trends Genet., 5, 185 (1989)) utilizing primers based on the nucleotide sequence of the gene. The asd genes of other microorganisms can be obtained in a similar manner.

Also, the aspC gene of E. coli has already been elucidated (nucleotide numbers 983742 to 984932 in the sequence of GenBank accession NC_(—)000913.1, gi:16128895), and can be obtained by PCR. The aspC genes from other microorganisms can be obtained in a similar manner.

L-Lysine Producing Bacteria

Examples of L-lysine producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia include mutants having resistance to an L-lysine analogue. The L-lysine analogue inhibits growth of bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia, but this inhibition is fully or partially desensitized when L-lysine is present in a medium. Examples of the L-lysine analogue include, but are not limited to, oxalysine, lysine hydroxamate, S-(2-aminoethyl)-L-cysteine (AEC), γ-methyllysine, α-chlorocaprolactam, and so forth. Mutants having resistance to these lysine analogues can be obtained by subjecting bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia to a conventional artificial mutagenesis treatment. Specific examples of bacterial strains useful for producing L-lysine include Escherichia coli AJ11442 (FERM BP-1543, NRRL B-12185; see U.S. Pat. No. 4,346,170) and Escherichia coli VL611. In these microorganisms, feedback inhibition of aspartokinase by L-lysine is desensitized.

The strain WC196 may be used as an L-lysine producing bacterium of Escherichia coli. This bacterial strain was bred by conferring AEC resistance to the strain W3110, which was derived from Escherichia coli K-12. The resulting strain was designated Escherichia coli AJ13069 strain, and was deposited at the National Institute of Bioscience and Human-Technology, Agency of Industrial Science and Technology (currently National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, International Patent Organism Depositary, Tsukuba Central 6, 1-1, Higashi 1-Chome, Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki-ken, 305-8566, Japan) on Dec. 6, 1994 and received an accession number of FERM P-14690. Then, it was converted to an international deposit under the provisions of the Budapest Treaty on Sep. 29, 1995, and received an accession number of FERM BP-5252 (U.S. Pat. No. 5,827,698).

L-Glutamic Acid Producing Bacteria

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-glutamic acid-producing bacteria of the present invention include, but are not limited to, L-glutamic acid-producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia, such as E. coli strain VL334thrC⁺ (EP 1172433). E. coli strain VL334 (VKPM B-1641) is an L-isoleucine and L-threonine auxotrophic strain having mutations in the thrC and ilvA genes (U.S. Pat. No. 4,278,765). A wild-type allele of the thrC gene was transferred by the method of general transduction using a bacteriophage P1 grown on wild-type E. coli strain K12 (VKPM B-7) cells. As a result, an L-isoleucine auxotrophic strain VL334thrC⁺ (VKPM B-8961) was obtained. This strain is able to produce L-glutamic acid.

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-glutamic acid-producing bacteria of the present invention include mutants which are deficient in α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity or have a reduced α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity. Bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia deficient in α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity or having reduced α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity and methods for obtaining them are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,378,616 and 5,573,945. Specifically, these strains include the following:

-   E. coli W3110sucA::Kmr -   E. coli AJ12624 (FERM BP-3853) -   E. coli AJ12628 (FERM BP-3854) -   E. coli AJ12949 (FERM BP4881)

E. coli W3110sucA::Kmr is obtained by disrupting the α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase gene (hereinafter referred to as “sucA gene”) of E. coli W3110. This strain is completely deficient in α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase.

Other examples of L-glutamic acid-producing bacteria, include mutant strains belonging to the genus Pantoea which are deficient in α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity or have decreased α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity, and can be obtained as described above. Such strains include Pantoea ananatis AJ13356. (U.S. Pat. No. 6,331,419). Pantoea ananatis AJ13356 was deposited at the National Institute of Bioscience and Human-Technology, Agency of Industrial Science and Technology, Ministry of International Trade and Industry (currently, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, International Patent Organism Depositary, Central 6, 1-1, Higashi 1-Chome, Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki-ken, 305-8566, Japan) on Feb. 19, 1998 and received an accession number of FERM P-16645. It was then converted to an international deposit under the provisions of Budapest Treaty on Jan. 11, 1999 and received an accession number of FERM BP-6615. Pantoea ananatis AJ13356 is deficient in α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity as a result of disruption of the αKGDH-E 1 subunit gene (sucA). The above strain was identified as Enterobacter agglomerans when it was isolated and deposited as Enterobacter agglomerans AJ13356. However, it was recently re-classified as Pantoea ananatis on the basis of nucleotide sequencing of 16S rRNA and so forth. Although AJ13356 was deposited at the aforementioned depository as Enterobacter agglomerans, for the purposes of this specification, they are described as Pantoea ananatis.

L-Tryptophan Producing Bacteria

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-tryptophan-producing bacteria of the present invention include, but are not limited to, L-tryptophan-producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia, such as E. coli JP4735/pMU3028 (DSM10122) and JP6015/pMU91 (DSM10123) deficient in tryptophanyl-tRNA synthetase encoded by a mutant trpS gene (U.S. Pat. No. 5,756,345); E. coli SV164 (pGH5) having serA allele free from feedback inhibition by serine (U.S. Pat. No. 6,180,373); E. coli AGX17 (pGX44) (NRRL B-12263) and AGX6(pGX50)aroP (NRRL B-12264) deficient in the enzyme tryptophanase (U.S. Pat. No. 4,371,614); E. coli AGX17/pGX50, pACKG4-pps in which a phosphoenolpyruvate-producing ability is enhanced (WO9708333, U.S. Pat. No. 6,319,696), and the like may be used.

Previously, it was identified that the yddG gene encodes a membrane protein which is not involved in a biosynthetic pathway of any L-amino acid. Also, the yddG gene is known to impart to a microorganism resistance to L-phenylalanine and several amino acid analogues when the wild-type allele of the gene is amplified on a multi-copy vector in the microorganism. Besides, the yddG gene can enhance production of L-phenylalanine or L-tryptophan when additional copies are introduced into the cells of the respective producing strain (WO03044192). So it is desirable that the L-tryptophan-producing bacterium be further modified to have enhanced expression of the yddG open reading frame.

L-Arginine Producing Bacterium

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-arginine-producing bacteria of the present invention include, but are not limited to, L-arginine producing bacteria, such as E. coli strain 237 (VKPM B-7925) (U.S. Patent Application U.S. 2002058315) and its derivative strains harboring mutant N-acetylglutamate synthase (Russian Patent Application No. 2001112869), E. coli strain 382 (VKPM B-7926) (European patent application EPI 170358), an arginine-producing strain into which argA gene encoding N-acetylglutamate synthetase is introduced (JP 57-5693A), and the like.

L-Phenylalanine Producing Bacterium

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-phenylalanine-producing bacteria of the present invention include, but are not limited to, L-phenylalanine producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia, such as E. coli AJ12739 (tyrA::Tn10, tyrR) (VKPM B-8197); E. coli HW1089 (ATCC 55371) harboring the pheA34 gene (U.S. Pat. No. 5,354,672); E. coli WEC111-b (KR8903681); E. coli RRL B-12141, NRRL B-12145, NRRL B-12146 and NRRL B-12147 (U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,952). Also, as a parent strain, E. coli K-12 [W3110 (tyrA)/pPHAB (FERM BP-3566), E. coli K-12 [W3110 (tyrA)/pPHAD] (FERM BP-12659), E. coli K-12 [W3110 (tyrA)/pPHATerm] (FERM BP-12662) and E. coli K-12 [W3110 (tyrA)/pBR-aroG4, pACMAB] named AJ 12604 (FERM BP-3579) may be used (EP 488424 B1). Furthermore, L-phenylalanine producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia with enhanced activity of the protein encoded by the yedA gene or the yddG gene may also be used (U.S. patent applications 2003/0148473 A1 and 2003/0157667 A1).

L-Cysteine-Producing Bacteria

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-cysteine-producing bacteria of the present invention include, but are not limited to, L-cysteine producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia, such as E. coli strain JM15 which is transformed with different cysE alleles coding for feedback-resistant serine acetyltransferases (U.S. Pat. No. 6,218,168, Russian patent application 2003121601); E. coli strain W3110 having over-expressed genes which encode proteins suitable for secreting substances toxic for cells (U.S. Pat. No. 5,972,663); E. coli strains having lowered cysteine desulfohydrase activity (JP 11-155571A); E. coli strain W3110 with increased activity of a positive transcriptional regulator for cysteine regulon coded by the cysB gene (WOO 127307A1), and the like.

L-Leucine Producing Bacteria

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-leucine-producing bacteria of the present invention include, but are not limited to, L-leucine-producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia, such as E. coli strains resistant to leucine analogs including β-2-thienylalanine, 3-hydroxyleucine, 4-azaleucine, 5,5,5-trifluoroleucine (JP 62-34397B and JP 08-70879A); E. coli strains obtained by the gene engineering method described in WO96/06926; E. coli strain H-9068 (JP 08-70879A), and the like.

The bacterium of the present invention may be improved by enhancing the expression of one or more genes involved in L-leucine biosynthesis. Examples include genes of the leuABCD operon, which are preferably represented by a mutant leuA gene coding for isopropylmalate synthase freed from feedback inhibition by L-leucine (U.S. Pat. No. 6,403,342). In addition, the bacterium of the present invention may be improved by enhancing the expression of one or more genes coding for proteins which excrete L-amino acid from the bacterial cell. Examples of such genes include the b2682 and b2683 genes (ygaZH genes) (Russian patent application 2001117632).

L-Proline Producing Bacterium

Examples of parent strains for deriving the L-proline-producing bacteria of the present invention include, but are not limited to, L-proline-producing bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia, such as E. coli strain 702ilvA (VKPM B-8012) which is deficient in the ilvA gene, and is able to produce L-proline (EP 1172433). The bacterium of the present invention may be improved by enhancing the expression of one or more genes involved in L-proline biosynthesis. Examples of such genes for L-proline producing bacteria include the proB gene coding for glutamate kinase of which feedback inhibition by L-proline is desensitized (DE Patent 3127361). In addition, the bacterium of the present invention may be improved by enhancing the expression of one or more genes coding for proteins excreting L-amino acid from a bacterial cell. Such genes are exemplified by the b2682 and b2683 genes (ygaZH genes) (EP1239041 A2).

Examples of bacteria belonging to the genus Escherichia which have an activity to produce L-proline include the following E. coli strains: NRRL B-12403 and NRRL B-12404 (GB Patent 2075056), VKPM B-8012 (Russian patent application 2000124295), plasmid mutants described in DE Patent 3127361, plasmid mutants described by Bloom F. R. et al (The 15^(th) Miami winter symposium, 1983, p. 34), and the like.

The above-mentioned L-amino acid producing strains may be further modified for enhancement of the pentose assimilation rate or for enhancement of the L-amino acid biosynthetic ability by the wide scope of methods well known to the person skilled in the art.

The utilization rate for pentose sugars can be further enhanced by amplification of the pentose assimilation genes, araFG and araBAD genes for arabinose, or by mutations in the glucose assimilation systems (PTS and non-PTS), such as ptsG mutations (Nichols N. N. et al, Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol., 2001, July 56:1-2, 120-5).

The process of the present invention includes a process for producing an L-amino acid comprising the steps of cultivating the L-amino acid producing bacterium in a culture medium, allowing the L-amino acid to accumulate in the culture medium, and collecting the L-amino acid from the culture medium, wherein the culture medium contains a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars. Also, the method of present invention includes a method for producing L-histidine comprising the steps of cultivating the L-histidine producing bacterium of the present invention in a culture medium, allowing L-histidine to accumulate in the culture medium, and collecting L-histidine from the culture medium, wherein the culture medium contains a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars. Also, the method of present invention includes a method for producing L-threonine comprising the steps of cultivating the L-threonine producing bacterium of the present invention in a culture medium, allowing L-threonine to accumulate in the culture medium, and collecting L-threonine from the culture medium, wherein the culture medium contains a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars. Also, the method of present invention includes a method for producing L-lysine comprising the steps of cultivating the L-lysine producing bacterium of the present invention in a culture medium, allowing L-lysine to accumulate in the culture medium, and collecting L-lysine from the culture medium, wherein the culture medium contains a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars. Also, the method of present invention includes a method for producing L-glutamic acid comprising the steps of cultivating the L-glutamic acid producing bacterium of the present invention in a culture medium, allowing L-glutamic acid to accumulate in the culture medium, and collecting L-glutamic acid from the culture medium, wherein the culture medium contains a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars. Also, the method of present invention includes a method for producing L-tryptophan comprising the steps of cultivating the L-tryptophan producing bacterium of the present invention in a culture medium, allowing L-tryptophan to accumulate in the culture medium, and collecting L-tryptophan from the culture medium, wherein the culture medium contains a mixture of glucose and pentose sugars.

The mixture of pentose sugars, such as xylose and arabinose, along with hexose sugar, such as glucose, can be obtained from under-utilized sources of biomass. Glucose, xylose, arabinose and other carbohydrates are liberated from plant biomass by steam and/or concentrated acid hydrolysis, dilute acid hydrolysis, hydrolysis using enzymes, such as cellulase, or alkali treatment. When the substrate is cellulosic material, the cellulose may be hydrolyzed to sugars simultaneously or separately and also fermented to L-amino acid. Since hemicellulose is generally easier to hydrolyze to sugars than cellulose, it is preferable to prehydrolyze the cellulosic material, separate the pentoses and then hydrolyze the cellulose by treatment with steam, acid, alkali, cellulases or combinations thereof to form glucose.

A mixture consisting of different ratios of glucose/xylose/arabinose was used in this study to approximate the composition of feedstock mixture of glucose and pentoses, which could potentially be derived from plant hydrolysates (see Example section).

In the present invention, the cultivation, collection, and purification of L-amino acids from the medium and the like may be performed in a manner similar to a conventional fermentation method wherein an amino acid is produced using a microorganism. The medium used for culture may be either a synthetic medium or a natural medium, so long as the medium includes a carbon source and a nitrogen source and minerals and, if necessary, appropriate amounts of nutrients which the microorganism requires for growth.

The carbon source may include various carbohydrates such as glucose, sucrose, arabinose, xylose and other pentose and hexose sugars, which the L-amino acid producing bacterium could utilize as a carbon source. Glucose, xylose, arabinose and other carbohydrates may be a part of feedstock mixture of sugars obtained from cellulosic biomass.

Pentose sugars suitable for fermentation in the present invention include, but are not limited to xylose and arabinose.

As the nitrogen source, various ammonium salts such as ammonia and ammonium sulfate, other nitrogen compounds such as amines, a natural nitrogen source such as peptone, soybean-hydrolysate and digested fermentative microorganism are used. As minerals, potassium monophosphate, magnesium sulfate, sodium chloride, ferrous sulfate, manganese sulfate, calcium chloride, and the like are used. Additional nutrients can be added to the medium if necessary. For instance, if the microorganism requires proline for growth (proline auxotrophy) a sufficient amount of proline can be added to the medium for cultivation.

Preferably, the cultivation is performed under aerobic conditions such as a shaking culture, and a stirring culture with aeration, at a temperature of 20 to 40° C., preferably 30 to 38° C. The pH of the culture is usually between 5 and 9, preferably between 6.5 and 7.2. The pH of the culture can be adjusted with ammonia, calcium carbonate, various acids, various bases, and buffers. Usually, a 1 to 5-day cultivation leads to the accumulation of the target L-amino acid in the liquid medium.

After cultivation, solids such as cells can be removed from the liquid medium by centrifugation or membrane filtration, and then the target L-amino acid can be collected and purified by ion-exchange, concentration and crystallization methods.

EXAMPLES

The present invention will be more concretely explained below with reference to the following non-limiting examples.

Example 1 Cloning the xylABFGHR Locus from the Chromosome of E. coli Strain MG1655

Based on genome analysis of E. coli strain MG1655, the genes xylABFGHR can be cloned as a single HindIII fragment (13.1 kb) of 556 HindIII chromosomal fragments in total (FIG. 1). For that purpose, a gene library was constructed using vector pUC19, which is capable of surviving in E. coli with insertions of that size.

To construct such a library, chromosomal DNA of MG1655 was digested with HindIII restrictases and the pUC19 vector was digested with XbaI restrictase. The strain MG1655 (ATCC47076, ATCC700926) can be obtained from American Type Culture Collection (10801 University Boulevard, Manassas, Va., 20110-2209, U.S.A.).

Sticky ends in both DNA preparations were subsequently filled by Klenow fragment so as to prevent self-ligation (two bases filling). After the ligation procedure a pool of recombinant pUC19 plasmids was obtained. The size of the library is more then 200 thousand clones. The gene library was analyzed by PCR using primers complementary to the plasmid sequence and primers complementary to the cloning chromosomal fragment. DNA fragments with appropriate molecular weights were not found among the PCR products, which was interpreted to mean that the fragment corresponding to the xylABFGHR operon was missing from the constructed library. This result may be due to the negative influence of the malS gene, and the yiaA and yiaB ORFs (with unknown function), which are also present in the HindIII fragment of interest. Another possible reason for negative selection is the large size of the Xyl-locus. To overcome this problem, new gene libraries were constructed based on a modified pUC19 plasmid. The main approach is to clone Xyl-locus as a set of fragments without of the adjacent malS gene and yiaA and yiaB ORFs.

For that purpose, a polylinker of plasmid pUC19 was modified by inserting a synthetic DNA fragment containing MluI restriction site. Two gene libraries were constructed in the modified pUC19 cloning vector. The first library was created by digestion of the chromosomal DNA of strain MG1655 and the modified pUC19 with HindIII and MluI restrictases followed by ligation. The library volume was more than 4,000 clones. The gene library was analyzed by PCR using primers complementary to the plasmid sequence, and primers 1 (SEQ ID NO:13) and 2 (SEQ ID NO:14) which are complementary to the fragment xylABFG of the xyl locus. The expected DNA fragments with appropriate molecular weights were found among the PCR products. The next step was to saturate the gene library with a fragment of interest. To this end, DNA from the original gene library was digested by endonucleases, restriction sites of which do not exist in the fragment of interest. There are Eco 147I, KpnI, MlsI, Bst1107I. The frequency of the plasmid of interest in the enriched library was 1/800 clones. The enriched library was analyzed by PCR as described above. After five sequential enrichments of the library the cell population, only ten clones containing xylABFG genes were found. The resulting plasmid containing HindIII-MluI DNA fragment with genes xylABFG was designated as pUC19/xylA-G. Then the HindIII-Mph 11031 fragment containing the yiaA and yiaB ORFs was eliminated from plasmid pUC19/xylA-G; sticky ends were blunted by Klenow fragment and a synthetic linker containing an EcoRI restriction site was inserted by ligation. Thus, the plasmid pUC19/xylA-G-2 was obtained. Then, the resulting pUC19/xylA-G-2 plasmid was cut by an EheI restrictase; sticky ends were blunted by Klenow fragment and synthetic linker containing HindIII restriction site was inserted by ligation. Thus the pUC19/xylA-G-3 plasmid was obtained. A HindIII restriction site was inserted with the remaining DNA fragment containing xylHR genes, resulting in the complete xyl locus.

The second library was created by digestion of the chromosomal DNA from strain MG1655 and a modified pUC19 with PstI and MluI restrictases, followed by ligation. The library volume was more than 6,000 clones. The gene library was analyzed by PCR using primers complementary to the plasmid sequence and primers 3 (SEQ ID NO:15) and 4 (SEQ ID NO:16), which are complementary to the cloning chromosomal fragment. DNA fragments with appropriate molecular weights were found among the PCR-products. The next step was a sequential subdivision of the gene library on cell population with known size, accompanied by PCR analysis. After seven sequential subdivision of library the cell population containing genes xylHR contained only ten clones. Among this population, a fragment DNA of interest was found by restriction analysis. The resulting plasmid containing PstI-MluI DNA fragment with xylHR genes was designated as pUC19/xylHR. Then, HindIII-MluI DNA fragment from plasmid pUC19/xylHR was ligated to the pUC19/xylA-G-3 plasmid, which had been previously treated with HindIII and MluI restrictases. Finally, the complete xyl locus of strain MG1655 was obtained. The resulting multicopy plasmid containing the complete xy/ABFGHR locus was designated pUC19/xylA-R.

Then HindIII-EcoRI DNA fragment from the pUC19/xylA-R plasmid was recloned into the low copy vector pMW119mod, which had been previously digested with HindIII and EcoRI restrictases, resulting in the low copy plasmid pMW119mod-xylA-R which contained the complete xylABFGHR locus. The low copy vector pMW119mod was obtained from the commercially available pMW119 vector by elimination of the PvuII-PvuII fragment. This fragment contains the multi-cloning site and was a major part of the lacZ gene. The lacZ gene contains sites for lacI repressor followed by insertion of synthetic linker containing EcoRI and HindIII sites, which are necessary for insertion of the xylABFGHR locus from the pUC19/xylA-R plasmid.

Example 2 Production of L-Histidine by L-Histidine Producing Bacterium from Fermentation of a Mixture of Glucose and Pentoses

L-histidine producing E. coli strain 80 was used as a strain for production of L-histidine by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentoses. E. coli strain 80 (VKPM B-7270) is described in detail in Russian patent RU2119536 and has been deposited in the Russian National Collection of Industrial Microorganisms (Russia, 113545 Moscow, 1st Dorozhny proezd, 1) on Oct. 15, 1999 under accession number VRPM B-7270. Then, it was transferred to an international deposit under the provisions of the Budapest Treaty on Jul. 12, 2004. Transformation of strain 80 with the pMW119mod-xylA-R plasmid was performed by ordinary methods, yielding strain 80/pMW1119mod-xylA-R.

To obtain the seed culture, both strains 80 and 80/pMW119mod-xylA-R were grown on a rotary shaker (250 rpm) at 27° C. for 6 hours in 40 ml test tubes (Ø 18 mm) containing 2 ml of L-broth with 1 g/l of streptomycin. For the strain 80/pMW119mod-xylA-R, 100 mg/l ampicillin was additionally added. Then, 2 ml (5%) of seed material was inoculated into the fermentation medium. Fermentation was carried out on a rotary shaker (250 rpm) at 27° C. for 65 hours in 40 ml test tubes containing 2 ml of fermentation medium.

After cultivation, the amount of L-histidine which had accumulated in the culture medium was determined by paper chromatography. The composition of the mobile phase is the following: butanol:acetate:water=4:1:1 (v/v). A solution (0.5%) of ninhydrin in acetone was used as a visualizing reagent. The results are presented in Table 2.

The composition of the fermentation medium (g/l):

Carbohydrates (total) 100.0 Mameno 0.2 (soybean hydrolysate) of TN (total nitrogen) L-proline 0.8 (NH₄)₂SO₄ 25.0 K₂HPO₄ 2.0 MgSO₄.7H₂O 1.0 FeSO₄.7H₂O 0.01 MnSO₄.5H₂O 0.01 Thiamine HCl 0.001 Betaine 2.0 CaCO₃ 6.0 Streptomycin 1.0

Carbohydrates (glucose, arabinose, xylose), L-proline, betaine and magnesium sulfate are sterilized separately. CaCO₃ dry-heat are sterilized at 110° C. for 30 min. pH is adjusted to 6.0 by KOH before sterilization. As can be seen from Table 2, increased expression of the xylABFGHR locus improved productivity of the L-histidine producing E. coli strain 80 which had been cultured in the medium containing xylose.

TABLE 2 Glucose/ Glucose/ Glucose Xylose xylose 1:1 Arabinose arabinose 1:1 His, His, His, His, His, Strain OD₄₅₀ g/l OD₄₅₀ g/l OD₄₅₀ g/l OD₄₅₀ g/l OD₄₅₀ g/l 80 43 8.9 No 0.4 39 3.2 37 10.3 40 8.7 growth 80/pMW119mod-xylA-R 39 9.3 50 9.6 39 9.9 36 10.5 40 9.1

Example 3 Production of L-Threonine by Fermentation of a Mixture of Glucose and Pentoses Using L-Threonine Producing Bacterium

L-threonine producing E. coli strain B-3996 was used to evaluate production of L-threonine by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose. Transformation of strain B-3996 with the pMW119mod-xylA-R plasmid and vector pMW119 was performed by an ordinary method using CaCl₂, yielding strains 3996/pMW119mod-xylA-R and 3996/pMW119, respectively.

Both E. coli strains B-3996/pMW119 and B-3996/pMW119mod-xylA-R were grown for 12-15 hours at 37° C. on L-agar plates containing streptomycin (50 mg/l) and ampicillin (150 mg/l). Then, the fermentation medium containing the carbon source xylose (4%) was inoculated with one loop of the strains. The fermentation was performed in 2 ml of fermentatin medium containing streptomycin (50 mg/l) in 20×200 mm test tubes. Cells were grown for 25 hours at 32° C. with shaking at 250 rpm.

After cultivation, the amount of L-threonine which has accumulated in the medium was determined by paper chromatography using the following mobile phase: butanol:acetic acid:water=4:1:1 (v/v). A solution (2%) of ninhydrin in acetone was used as a visualizing reagent. A spot containing L-threonine was cut out, L-threonine was eluted in 0.5% water solution of CdCl₂, and the amount of L-threonine was estimated spectrophotometrically at 540 nm. The results are presented in Table 3.

The composition of the fermentation medium (g/l) is as follows:

Carbohydrates 40.0 (NH₄)₂SO₄ 24.0 NaCl 0.8 KH₂PO₄ 2.0 MgSO₄.7H₂O 0.8 FeSO₄.7H₂O 0.02 MnSO₄.5H₂O 0.02 Thiamine HCl 0.0002 Yeast extract 1.0 CaCO₃ 30.0

Glucose and magnesium sulfate are sterilized separately. CaCO₃ dry-heat is sterilized at 180° C. for 2 h. The pH is adjusted to 7.0. Antibiotic is introduced into the medium after sterilization.

TABLE 3 Xylose Strain OD₅₄₀ Thr, g/l B-3996/pMW119 13.9 ± 1.0 7.0 ± 0.2 B-3996/pMW119mod-xylA-R 16.1 ± 0.9 9.3 ± 0.9

As can be seen from Table 3, increased expression of the xylABFGHR locus improved productivity of the L-threonine producing E. coli strain B-3996/pMW119 which had been cultured in the medium containing xylose.

Example 4 Production of L-Lysine by Fermentation of a Mixture of Glucose and Pentoses Using L-Lysine Producing Bacterium

L-lysine producing E. coli strain WC196ΔcadA Δldc was used to evaluate production of L-lysine by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose. Strain WC196ΔcadA ΔldcC was obtained from strain WC196 by inactivation of lysine decarboxylases coded by ldcC gene and cadA gene as it was described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,827,698. Transformation of strain WC196ΔcadA Δldc with the pMW119mod-xylA-R plasmid and vector pMW119 was performed by an ordinary method using CaCl₂, yielding strains WC196ΔcadA ΔldcpMW119mod-xylA-R and WC196ΔcadA Δldc/pMW119, respectively.

Both E. coli strains WC196ΔcadA Δldc/pMW119 and WC196ΔcadA Δldc/pMW119mod-xylA-R were grown for 12-15 hours at 37° C. on L-agar plates containing ampicillin (150 mg/l). Then, the fermentation medium containing either xylose (4%) or a xylose (2%)/glucose (2%) mixture as a carbon source was inoculated with one loop of strains. The fermentation was performed in 2 ml of fermentation medium 20×200 mm test tubes. Cells were grown for 25 hours at 32° C. with shaking at 250 rpm.

After cultivation, the amount of L-lysine which has accumulated in the medium was determined by paper chromatography using the following mobile phase: butanol:acetic acid:water=4:1:1 (v/v). A solution (2%) of ninhydrin in acetone was used as a visualizing reagent. A spot containing L-lysine was cut out, L-lysine was eluted in 0.5% water solution of CdCl₂, and the amount of L-lysine was estimated spectrophotometrically at 540 nm. The results are presented in Table 4.

The composition of the fermentation medium (g/l) is as follows:

Carbohydrates 40.0 (NH₄)₂SO₄ 24.0 KH₂PO₄ 1.0 MgSO₄.7H₂O 1.0 FeSO₄.7H₂O 0.01 MnSO₄.5H₂O 0.01 Yeast extract 2.0 CaCO₃ 30.0

Glucose and magnesium sulfate are sterilized separately. CaCO₃ dry-heat is sterilized at 180° C. for 2 h. The pH is adjusted to 7.0 with KOH. Antibiotic is introduced into the medium after sterilization.

TABLE 4 Xylose Glucose/xylose 1:1 Strain OD₅₄₀ Lys, g/l OD₅₄₀ Lys, g/l WC196ΔcadA 5.7 ± 0.2 0.0 24.5 ± 0.2 1.0 ± 0.3 Δldc/pMW119 WC196ΔcadA 35.2 ± 0.7  1.8 ± 0.2 36.7 ± 0.2 2.0 ± 0.3 Δldc/ pMW119mod-xylA-R

As can be seen from Table 4, increased expression of the xylABFGHR locus improved productivity of the L-lysine producing E. coli strain WC196ΔcadA Δldc/pMW119 cultured in the medium containing xylose.

Example 5 Production of L-Glutamic Acid by Fermentation of a Mixture of Glucose and Pentoses Using L-Glutamic Acid Producing Bacterium

L-glutamic acid producing E. coli strain AJ12624 was used to evaluate production of L-glutamic acid by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose. Transformation of strain AJ12624 with the pMW119mod-xylA-R plasmid and vector pMW19 was performed by ordinary method using CaCl₂, yielding strains AJ12624/pMW119mod-xylA-R and AJ12624/pMW119, respectively.

Both E. coli strains AJ12624/pMW119 and AJ12624/pMW119mod-xylA-R were grown for 12-15 hours at 37° C. on L-agar plates containing ampicillin (150 mg/l). Then, the fermentation medium containing xylose (4%) as a carbon source was inoculated with one loop of strains. The fermentation was performed in 2 ml of fermentatin medium in 20×200 mm test tubes. Cells were grown for 48 hours at 32° C. with shaking at 250 rpm.

After cultivation, the amount of L-glutamic acid which has accumulated in the medium was determined by paper chromatography using the following mobile phase: butanol:acetic acid:water=4:1:1 (v/v). A solution (2%) of ninhydrin in acetone was used as a visualizing reagent. A spot containing L-glutamic acid was cut out, L-glutamic acid was eluted in 0.5% water solution of CdCl₂, and the amount of L-glutamic acid was estimated spectrophotometrically at 540 nm. The results are presented in Table 5.

The composition of the fermentation medium (g/l):

Carbohydrates 40.0 (NH₄)₂SO₄ 25.0 KH₂PO₄ 2.0 MgSO₄.7H₂O 1.0 Thiamine HCl 0.0001 L-isoleucine 0.07 CaCO₃ 25.0

Glucose and magnesium sulfate are sterilized separately. CaCO₃ dry-heat sterilized at 180° C. for 2 h. pH is adjusted to 7.2.

TABLE 5 Xylose Strain OD₅₄₀ Glu, g/l AJ12624/pMW119 8.6 ± 0.3 4.5 ± 0.2 AJ12624/pMW119mod-xylA-R 8.0 ± 0.2 5.3 ± 0.2

As can be seen from Table 5, increased expression of the xy/ABFGHR locus improved productivity of the L-glutamic acid producing E. coli strain AJ12624/pMW119 which had been cultured in the medium containing xylose.

Example 6 Production of L-Tryptophan By Fermentation of a Mixture of Glucose and Pentoses Using L-Tryptophan Producing Bacterium

L-tryptophan producing E. coli strain SV164/pGH5 was used to evaluate production of L-tryptophan by fermentation of a mixture of glucose and pentose. Transformation of strain SV164/pGH5 with the pMW119mod-xylA-R plasmid and vector pMW119 was performed by ordinary method using CaCl₂, yielding strains SV164/pGH5/pMW119mod-xylA-R and SV164/pGH5/pMW119, respectively.

Both E. coli strains SV164/pGH5/pMW119 and SV164/pGH5/pMW119mod-xylA-R were grown for 12-15 hours at 37° C. on L-agar plates containing tetracycline (30 mg/l) and ampicillin (150 mg/l). Then, the fermentation medium contining either xylose (4%) or xylose (2%)/glucose (2%) mixture as a carbon source was inoculated with one loop of strains. The fermentation was performed in 2 ml of fermentatin medium in 20×200 mm test tubes. Cells were grown for 48 hours at 30° C. with shaking at 250 rpm.

After cultivation, the amount of L-tryptophan which has accumulated in the medium was determined by TLC. 10×15 cm TLC plates coated with 0.11 mm layers of Sorbfil silica gel without fluorescent indicator (Stock Company Sorbpolymer, Krasnodar, Russia) can be used. Sorbfil plates can be developed with a mobile phase: propan-2-ol:ethylacetate:25% aqueous ammonia:water=40:40:7:16 (v/v). A solution (2%) of ninhydrin in acetone can be used as a visualizing reagent. The results are presented in Table 7. The fermentation medium components are set forth in Table 5, but should be sterilized in separate groups A, B, C, D, E, F, and H, as shown, to avoid adverse interactions during sterilization.

TABLE 6 Solutions Component Final concentration, g/l A KH₂PO₄ 1.5 NaCl 0.5 (NH₄)₂SO₄ 1.5 L-Methionine 0.05 L-Phenylalanine 0.1 L-Tyrosine 0.1 Mameno (total N) 0.07 B Glucose 40.0 MgSO₄.7H₂O 0.3 C CaCl₂ 0.011 D FeSO₄.7H₂O 0.075 Sodium citrate 1.0 E Na₂MoO₄.2H₂O 0.00015 H₃BO₃ 0.0025 CoCl₂.6H₂O 0.00007 CuSO₄.5H₂O 0.00025 MnCl₂.4H₂O 0.0016 ZnSO₄.7H₂O 0.0003 F Thiamine HCl 0.005 G CaCO₃ 30.0 H Pyridoxine 0.03 Solution A had pH 7.1 adjusted by NH₄OH.

TABLE 7 Xylose Glucose/xylose 1:1 Strain OD₅₄₀ Trp, g/l OD₅₄₀ Trp, g/l SV164/pGH5/pMW119 3.5 ± 0.4 0.5 ± 0.2 15.3 ± 0.2 5.3 ± 0.7 SV164/pGH5/pMW119mod-xylA-R 13.9 ± 0.5  3.6 ± 0.5 15.1 ± 0.8 6.0 ± 0.5

As can be seen from Table 7, increased expression of the xylABFGHR locus improved productivity of the L-tryptophan producing E. coli strain SV164/pGH5/pMW119 cultured in the medium containing xylose.

While the invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various changes can be made, and equivalents employed, without departing from the scope of the invention. Each of the aforementioned documents is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, including the foreign priority documents RU2004107548, filed Mar. 16, 2004 and RU2005106720, filed Mar. 14, 2005. 

1. An L-amino acid producing Escherichia bacterium, comprising enhanced activities of xylose utilization enzymes, wherein the activities of the xylose utilization enzymes are enhanced by increasing the copy number of the Escherichia xylABFGHR locus or modifying an expression control sequence so that expression of the Escherichia xylABFGHR locus is enhanced.
 2. The bacterium according to claim 1, wherein the copy number is increased by transforming the bacterium with a low-copy vector harboring the xylABFGHR locus.
 3. An L-amino acid producing Escherichia bacterium, wherein expression of the Escherichia xylABFGHR locus is increased by increasing the copy number of the locus or placing the locus under the control of a promoter which is more potent than the native promoter.
 4. The bacterium of claim 3, wherein the locus comprises the polynucleotides of SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and
 11. 5. The bacterium of claim 3, wherein the locus comprises a polynucleotide which is more than 95% homologous to the polynucleotides of SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and
 11. 6. The bacterium of claim 3, wherein the copy number is increased by transforming the bacterium with a low-copy vector harboring the locus.
 7. The bacterium of claim 3, wherein the more potent promoter is selected from the group consisting of the PR promoter, PL promoter, lac promoter, trp promoter, and trc promoter. 